Apparatus for packing food products



Aug. l 1, 1953 E. H. CARRUTHERS APPARATUS POR PACKING Poom PRODUCTS 4Sheets-Sheet Filed oct. 4, 1949 Dial..

Aug 1l, 1953 E. H. CARRUTHERS 2,648,478

APPARATUS FOR PACKING FOOD PRODUCTS Filed OC. 4, 1949 4 SheetsShee*v 2INVENTOR. 55E/V H. CA/F/fU//E/PS Aug. 11, 1953 E. H. cARRuTl-IERS2,648,478

APPARATUS RoR PACKING Roon PRODUCTS Filed Oct. 4, 1949 4 Sheets-'Sheet 3E. H. CARRUTHERS APPARATUS FOR PACKING FOOD PRODUCTS Aug. 11, 1953 4Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed OCT.. 4, 1949 INVENTOR. 55E/V H. CAR/QUTHf/iPatented Aug. 11, 1953 UNITED S TAT E. S vvPAT EN T OFFICE APPARATUS FORPACKING 'FO OD 'PRODUCTS 'Eben H. Carruthers, Warrenton, Oreg.Application October 4, 1949,'Serial`No. 119,467

v14 Claims.

l My invention relates to apparatus for packing food products and moreparticularly to apparatus for molding and packing elongated Vegetablessuch as string beans, carrots, asparagus, etc. in

cans in what is sometimes called in the art an asparagus type of pack.

The apparatus of my invention will be particularly described inconnection with the packing of string beans in a so-called jumbled typeof pack, one of the purposes for which it-has '4' been primarilydesigned. However, it maybe employed for packing products other thanthose specifically mentionedI such `as beets, sausages and perhaps otherproducts of similar character.

While most vegetables have been with reasonable success packed -bymachine, insofar as Iam aware, no one prior to the invention of'thisapplication has developed a machine for successfully packing a so-calledjumbled pack of string beans.

In making a jumbled pack of 4string beans, the 5 beans are usuallypicked when quite young Vand tender. At this stage in their development,the beans are very pliable and there is a lack of uniformity in theirsize `and shape. They tend to tangle themselves in a lmass particularlybecause the long axis thereof is usually sharply curved and it istherefore impossible to arrange them in the can in any uniform manner.The tangling of the beans in a mass makes it substantially impossible topack them by conventional food packing machinery and, while the machineof the present invention has other uses, it has been particularlydeveloped to overcome the problems encountered in packing a jumbled packof young string beans.

An object of my invention is to provide anextremely simple machineadapted to pack a jumbled pack of a substantially Vuniform weight ofstring beans at a high rate of speed.

A `further object of my invention 4is to provide an endless chain ofmold units so constructed and arranged that when they are open thevadjacent mold units form substantially Vedge to edge contact with eachother so that no or very little space exists between adjacent molds inwhich the beans may lodge to interfere with closing of the mold units orresult in the damage to the beans.

Another object of my invention isto vprovide a machine particularlydesigned for packing a jumbled pack of string beans in which during .the

lling operation the mold units or molding pockets are open insubstantially edge to edge contact and the ends of the mold units areclosedso rthat the operators may Aplace-the beans `in the mold runits:from the top while all sides of the mold units are closed, the vopentop presenting a llarge area opening and the molding unit 'presenting alarge capacity trough in which the operator may deposit the beanswithout the operator being Yrequired to exercise undue care in the llingof the mold units with a substantially uniformquantity of beans.

Stillanother object of my invention is to provide a mold unit which whenopen presents a large pocket or trough for the Vreception of the beans,the capacity being Verymuch greater than the mold unit when it is closedso 'that the beans when deposited in the 'pocket with a proper chargefor filling the can, lare for the most part well below the top edges ofthe mold unit.

Another object Aof -my invention is to provide a series of continuouslymoving mold units in which after the charge 'is placed in the troughsofthe mold units, the mold units are closed at the top wherebyany'openings inthe mold units in which beans may jam are ofinsignificant size and the Amovable mold elements during the closingthereof sweep the top closure so as to sweep any stray beans not in thetroughs of the mold units into the troughs.

My invention further'contemplates the provision of a mold'unit which,when open, presents a large capacity pocket or trough which may beproperly filled to the desired capacity solely by the judgment of ltheoperator and which during the closing of vthe mold is completelyprotected on all sides against jamming of the beans in between adjacent`parts ofthe mold unit and the stationary members which form with themold elements a complete enclosure Yfor the product,

the mold unit when closed molding the material to the shape of the canvand the mold units being successively moved to a 'can filling stationwhere the charge of'beans is automatically placed in the cans insubstantially the proper amount for the -filled. Yweight desired.

Other objects and `advantages of my invention will be'particularlypointed out in the claims and will be apparent from the followingdescription,

when taken in connection with the accompany- Aing drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of the machine of my invention with partsbroken away and other parts, illustratedin dotted .lines-better toillustrate themachine of my invention;

.Eig..2 is a topplan view of the machine showing apartof thebelt forfeeding the beans to the operators .prior .to Vplacing them in the moldunits with portions of the machine being shown in dotted lines;

, operators.

Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional view taken substantially on the line 3-3of Fig. 2 in the direction indicated by the arrows;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged View of a portion of Fig. 1 showing the actionduring the closing of the mold units with part of the side wallenclosing the mold units broken away and part of the mold closingelements shown in dotted lines better to illustrate the invention;

Fig. 5 is a sectional view taken substantially on the line 5 5 of Fig. 4in the direction indicated by the arrows; and

Fig. 6 is a sectional view taken substantially on the line 6--6 of Fig.l in the direction indicated by the arrows.

In the drawings, I have shown a feed belt II for conveying the beans tothe operators who stand adjacent the end of the feed belt and transferthe beans to the mold units, generally indicated by the numeral I2. Ifdesired apparatus (not shown) may be employed in connection with thefeed belt I I to feed the beans at a more or less uniform rate to theoperators at the filling station. Moreover, if desired, several feedbelts may be employed to feed the materials to the Thus, for example inthe packing of fruit cocktail it would be possible to provide separatefeed belts for each ingredient to be packed in the cans. These and otherarrangements are no part of my present invention.

Referring to Fig. l, the machine includes a frame comprising a pair ofsupporting members I3 and a pair of supporting members I4 located onopposite sides of the machine. The supporting members I4 are spacedfurther apart than the supporting members I3 and are connected togetherby a channel I5 and tie rods I5. The supporting members I3 and I4 areconnected together through the channel I5 by pairs of channel shapedrunner members I B and I1 located at opposite sides of the machine whichmay be welded or otherwise secured to the channel I5. Extending acrossthe machine are pairs of channels I8 and I9 which are welded orotherwise secured to the runner members IB and I1, the assemblyproviding a rigid frame structure for the reception of the operatingparts of the machine.

A driving sprocket 2l (Fig. 2) is fixed to a drive shaft 22 by means ofa key and may be driven by a chain and motor (not shown).

As shown in Fig. 3, a pair of driving sprockets 23 are keyed to theshaft, as indicated at 24, so as to rotate with the shaft. A spider 26extends between the driving sprockets and is bolted or otherwise securedthereto so that the driving sprockets are rigidly held together. Thedrive sprockets are each adapted to receive the drive pins of a chain,generally indicated by the numeral 21. As shown in Fig. 1y the chainspass over idler sprockets 28 mounted on an idler shaft 29 carried by thesupporting frame members I3. The driving shaft 22 and the idler shaft 29are of course suitably journaled in the frame, as indicated at 3! (Figs.2 and 3).

Referring to Figs. 4 and 5, each mold unit comprises a xed but bodilymovable base meinber 3G and a pair of movable jaw elements 31 which arepivoted with respect to the base 36 on opposite sides thereof. The base36 is a partial cylinder and extends transversely of the machine for alength somewhat in excess of the height of the can in which the beans orother products are to be packed. The movable jaws are somewhat S shapedLso that when moved from the open position shown in solid lines in Fig. 4to the substantially closed position, shown in dotted lines, theportions 38 of the movable jaws follow the contour of the transverseedges 39 of the base member. By this arrangement close clearances resultand crevices are avoided in which the beans may lodge. The portions 4Iof the movable jaws are formed on the arc of a circle and extendtransversely of the machine to form partial cylinders which, whenclosed, completely envelope all sides of the product except for the factthat the molds have open ends.

In Fig. 4 I have shown the right mold unit as partly closed for purposeswhich will later appear. However, when the mold units are fully open, asillustrated in dotted lines in Fig. 1, they present a trough ofconsiderably greater capacity than the mold units when they are closedso that the operators will have no trouble in placing the beans in thebottom of the mold units. The mold units are of sufcient capacity whenopen to receive a full charge of beans with the beans, except for straybeans, being located well below the top transverse edges 42 of themovable jaws 31.

One of the distinct advantages of the mold units thus far described liesin their large capacity when open. However, further advantage resides inthe fact that the movable jaws extend along opposite sides of the basemember 36 so as to provide a rectangular opening or trough between theedges 42 of the movable jaws which presents an extremely wide mouth ortrough to the operators for the reception of the beans. The beans maythus be placed in the mold units without the operators being required toexercise undue care.

As shown most clearly in Fig. 1 and as also shown in Fig. 4, the movablejaws when open are in contiguous relation with the movable jaws ofadjacent mold units to avoid spaces between the mold units during thelling operation in which beans may lodge. By contiguous I mean arelationship between the movable jaws of adjacent mold units such thatthey are either touching when open or are in such close proximity toeach other that no substantial space exists between the adjacent movablejaws.

Secured to the under side of each base member 36 as by welding orbrazing are four plates or frame members 46 (Fig. 5). These plates notonly serve to support the base member but also serve as the fixedelements about which the various movable parts, as presently described,shift. Fastened to the outer frame members 4S are runners `41 whichslide in channels 48 carried by the frame channels I1 as shown in Fig.5. The channels 48 extend across the top of the machine to a point justbeyond where the cans enter the machine (Fig. 1) and the leading ends ofthe runners are beveled to facilitate their entry into the channels. Thebase members 3B thus move along a xed path as they travel through themold filling and mold closing stations.

The chain pins 5I (Fig. 5) extend through the rollers 52 of the chainand through the chain links 53 and the plates or frames 46. In thismannerthe mold units are secured to the chain but the links may shifttheir relative position with respect to the mold units when the chainspass around the sprockets.

The four links 53 of the two chains are pivotally connected, as shown at56 (Fig. 4), to

the plates or frame members 46 of one base member and the other ends ofthe links 53 are pivotally secured, as shown at 51, to the correspondingplatesor frame members 46 of the adjacent molding unit. Thearrangement'of the complete set of 'molding units and showing how they"are connected together is illustrated in Fig. 1.

Each of the movable arms or mold members 3l has on the rearward sidethereof, a plurality of ears 53 which are by means oi pivot pins 59(Fig. 5) pivotally connected (see also Fig. 4) to the plates or framemembers 46 of the base member 3 Thus, when actuated by suitablemechanism, the movable arms 3l may swing about the pivots 59 from thesolid line position shown in Fig. 4 to the dotted line position shown inthe same figure.

The means for actuating the movable arms or mold elements 31 comprises apair of depending connecting members El and 62, one pair being pivotallyattached to each of the movable Yarms 3l'. The connecting members arepivoted to the center of the three ears 58 on the rearward side of themovable arms 3l by means of pivot pins 53 whereby the connecting members6l and E2 are free to swing with respect to the ears 58. A shaft @iiextends between each pair of depending connecting members 5l and 62 andeach shaft carries a roller 5l. As will be clear upon reference to Fig.5, the rollers are adapted to ride upon cams $8 and B?. The cams aresuitably supported on angle irons lil.

fis shown in dotted lines in l, the cams 56 and 69 have an entrance end'il which is inclined upwardly so as to receive the rollers tl. Themovable arms gradually begin to close somewhat beyond the entrance end,the direction of travel of the mold units being indicated by the arrowsA in Figs. l and l. It will be apparent from the foregoing that eachmovable mold element has its own actuating means.

As will be clear from Fig. fi, the cams 88 and @d are out oi phase. Bythe expression out of phase is meant the fact that cam E3 for the rollerc? for the leading arm or mold element il rises sooner than thecorresponding cam for the roller ill' of the following arm 3l. That is,as shown in Fig. 4, the roller 6l at the right is higher than the rollert? at the left by reason of the out of phase relationship of the cams.This causes the leading arm or mold element 31 to move toward a closedposition prior Ito the following arm 3l' for a purpose which will laterappear.

For the purpose of normally retaining the molding arms 3l' in an openposition a pair of springs 'i5 are provided. One end of each of thesprings is connected to ears carried by the stationary base 35. Theother ends of the springs are connected, as shown at l2, to bell cranks'13. The bell cranks are pivoted. as shown at M, to the center tramemembers le or the xed base member S5 and the other ends of the bellcranks are secured, as shown at lli, to the depending connecting members5I. The action oi' the spring l and the bell crank is normally to rotatethe bell crank at the right (Fig. 4) clockwise around its pivot pointlt. The other bell crank is normally urged in a countercloclzwisedirection. The movable molding arms 3l are thus normally retained in theopen position. The springs further retain the connecting members lil and62 substantially vertical and urge the depending connecting membersdownward into engagement with the cams 68 and S9.

As shown most clearly in Fig. 5, carried by the members i8 and'preferably riveted thereto are a pair of side walls Si. These sidewalls v8l extend from the forward end of fthe upper Arun of the chains,as shown at d2, 'to the rearward end of the upper .run of chains, asshown at 83. -As will be apparent from Fig. Y6, the mold units are openvat their transverse ends. The purpose of 'the side walls 8l is to closeveffectively the open ends of the molds during the lling opera- -tionand during the closing of .the molds. The side walls 8l, as indicated inFig. `5, are suffciently close to the open ends of the mold units as toprevent beans from lodging or being caught in the slight space whichdoes exist between the ends of the movable mold units and the stationaryside walls 8l.

It `will now be apparent that during the filling of the molds, the moldsare open at the top. However, on all other sides the mold units areclosed. Moreover, since the two movable arms or mold elements spreadupward and outward from a central base member which also serves to forma part of the cylinder, the distance between the free ends of themovable molding arms is quite large so that a full charge of the beansoccupies only a small portion of the mold units. Moreover, the movablefree ends of adjacent mold units are contiguous to avoid any substantialspace between the free edges in which beans may lodge and, as previouslymentioned and as shown in Fig. 6, the side walls 8l close the ends ofthe molds without any substantial space existing between the ends oi themolds and the side walls 8 I.

Clearly shown in Fig. 1, at the end of the filling station, a coverplate ill is provided which eX- tends from the end of the illing stationto substantially the point where the cans to be 'filled are admitted tothe machine. The forward end of the cover plate has a transverselyextending upturned lip 92 for the purpose of brushing into the moldunits any stray beans which may have lodged on the top edges of the freeends of the mold units.

.As shown most clearly in Fig. 5, the cover Vplate rests on iianges 93formed along the top edges of the side plates or walls Bl. The coverplate 9i may be held in position in any suitable manner as by wing nuts9d suitably spaced along the .cover plate. Adjacent the point QS(Fig. 1) where the molds start to close, the cover plate and of coursethe top iianges 93 of the side walls upon which the cover plate rests,is shaped so as to conform to the arc about which the molding arms 3lswing. This arc of movement of the molding arms is controlled by shapingthe cams i3d and 69 to produce the desired path of movement of the freeends of the arms. Thus, as viewed in Fig. 4 in which view the rightkmolding arm is shown partly moved toward closed position, the extremityof the free end of the arm moves in close proximity during the closingmovement thereof or contiguous to the under side of the cover plate Sil. The effect of this arrangement is to cause the molding arm to sweepclosely beneath or contiguous to the cover plate ill as it moves towardclosed position and push the Vbeans ahead of it without allowing them toescape from the mold units. Similarly the rearward molding arm sweepsforwardly in close proximity to the under side of the cover plate andpushes the beans ahead oi it. The mold units are thus completely closedon all sides while the movable molding arms are moving toward-closedposition. Stray beans are thus constrained to move into one or the otherof the `mold units and the beans are gathered and compressed into acompact cylindrical form. As previouslymentioned, thecams S8 and 69areout f phase so that the molding arm 31 at the right of Fig. 4.preferably starts to close first.

The cans S1 enter the machine through a can track 98 and drop intosemi-circular openings 99 (Fig. 1) formed in a can turret, generallyindicated by the numeral IOI. The can turret comprises a pair of plates|02 which are connected together as shown in the drawings by a spiderI3. The plates |02 and the spider are keyed to the shaft 22 as indicatedat |03 so that they will rotate in unison with the sprockets 23.Thereby, as each mold unit is closed and moved into the can fillingstation, it comes into registry with a can dropped down from the canshoot or track into a pocket 99. A backing plate |06 secured to the canturret, as shown at IG'I, engages the bottom of the can as shown at |08and forms a stop for the can when the beans are pushed into the can.After the cans have been filled, as will be presently described, thecans rotate through approximately 180 degrees and drop (Fig. 1) into acan discharge chute or track III.

Rigidly secured to the shaft 22 so as to rotate therewith is a plungercarrying unit, generally indicated by the numeral I I2. The plungercarrying unit comprises a pair of plates II3 which are connectedtogether as shown in the drawings by a spider II4. The plunger carryingunit I I2 since it is keyed to and rotates with the shaft 22, can be andis arranged so that the plungers ||6 aline with the mold units which, aspreviously mentioned, aline with the open ends of the can. The plungersIIS have a plunger face |I'I slightly smaller than the diameter of themold units when closed. The plungers |I| pass through bushings IISmounted in the plates II3 and the actuation of the plungers iscontrolled by a cam H9. Rollers mounted on the ends of the plunger rodsII- ride on the cam I IQ.

Means are provided for adjusting the cam ||9 which is provided withintegral flanges, indicated at I2I through which bolts pass and secure aplate |22. The cam IIB has an annular cavity for the reception of theheads of bolts |23 which are threaded into the side stands or framemembers I4. By adjusting the position of nuts |23, the cam may beadjusted to cause the plunger faces to be inserted into the mold unitsat the proper time and to the proper extent to secure a desired degreeof compression of the beans in the can. Preferably the lobe or highpoint |24 of the cam is arranged so that the face ||'I of the plungerenters the can to an extent suicient to compress the beans so that theirnatural resiliency will not cause them to spring outwardly over theedges of the can. Each of the plunger rods is provided with a collarI2'I iixed to the plunger rod as shown in the drawings. The collarserves as a backing for a spring |28, the other end of which bearsagainst the plate II3. The spring serves to press the collar and plungerin a direction to the left, as viewed in Fig. 3, so that the rollerrides on the cam IIS. The collar I2'I has an extended arm |29 which hasa forked end |3I. Rods |32 exten-:l between and are secured to theplates II3 and are adapted to receive sleeves |33 which the forked endsof the arms straddle. By this arrangement the rods are maintained inposition such that the rollers will always maintain contact with androtate parallel to the cam IIS.

It is believed from the above that the operation of the machine of myinvention will be clear. It is suicient to state that during the initialpart l'8 of the upper run of the chains the mold units are spread Wideopen so as to readily receive the beans placed therein by the operator.After being filled with a proper charge of the material, the properlevel of charge being capable of being readily estimated by anexperienced operator, the mold units pass through, in effect, a tunnelduring which interval the mold units are closed on all sides so as toavoid jamming of the beans and the movable mold elements move to aclosed position. After the molds have been closed and the beans havebeen compressed thereby, the mold units are brought into alinement withthe open ends of the cans fed from the can shoot 98. The

i plungers IIS are then actuated in proper timed relation by the cam |I9to force the compressed beans into the can. As previously mentioned theplunger to some extent extends into the can so that the beans arecompressed in the cans. The lled cans continue their rotation with thecan turret and are discharged into the discharge shoot I I At the bottomof the turret the cams 68 and 69 are sloped so that the molds are freeto open under the action of the springs l5. They remain in this opencondition throughout most of their movement until they again reach thetunnel formed by the cover plate.

While I have described the preferred form of my invention, it will beapparent that various modifications and changes may be made particularlyin the form and relation of parts without departing from the spirit ofmy invention as set forth in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In a machine of the character described, in combination, a pluralityof molding units, each of said molding units including a base portion ofpartial cylindrical form and a pair of arms pivoted with respect to saidbase portion on each side thereof, each of said arms having at least aportion of its surface forming a partial cylinder, and means for movingsaid arms to a closed position with respect to said base portion to forma cylinder, one of said arms being movable t0- ward the closed positionbefore the other.

2. In a machine of the character described, in combination, a pluralityof molding units, means for pivotally linking adjacent molding unitstogether, means for moving said molding units through a path of travel,each of said molding units including a pair of arms of partialcylindrical form pivoted with respect to each other and having freeedges, said arms when swung apart forming a trough for the reception ofthe product, means for swinging said arms toward each other to formsubstantially a cylinder for confining the product, a covering elementbeneath which the molding units pass during their travel after they havebeen filled, said covering element being shaped so that the path ofmovement of said arms being such that during closing of the moldingunits the free edges of the arms move in contiguous relation to thecovering element.

3. In a machine of the character described, in combination, a pluralityof molding units, means for pivotally linking adjacent molding unitstogether, means for moving said molding units through a path of travel,each of said molding units including a base portion of partialcylindrical form and a pair of arms of partial cylindrical form pivotedwith respect to each other and with respect to said base portion andhaving free edges, said arms when swung apart forming with the baseportion a trough for the reception of the product, means for swingingsaid arms toward each other to form with the base portion substantiallya cylinder for conning the product, a cover element beneath which themolding units pass during. their travel after they have been iilled,said cover element being shaped so that and the path of movement of saidarms being such that during closing of the molding units the free edgesof the arms move in contiguous rela'- tion to the cover element.

4. In a machine of the character describa., in combination, a pluralityof molding units, means for pivotally linking adjacent molding together, means for moving said molding. u." 't through a path of travel,each of molrliy units including a pair of arms of partial cylinorz calform pivoted with respect to each other having free edges, said armswhen swung apart forming a trough for the reception of the product,means for swinging said arms toward each other to form substantially acylinder for confining the product, stationary means for closing theends of said molding units while they are being nlled and during theirclosing movement, a covering element beneath which the molding unitspass during their travel arter they have beenA filled, said coveringelement being shaped so that and the path of movement of said arms beingsuch that during closing of the molding units the free edges of the armsmove in contiguous relation te the covering element.

5. In a machine of the character described, in combination, a pluralityof molding units, means for pivotally linking4 adjacent molding unitstogether, means for moving said molding units through a path of travel,each o said molding units includinga base portion of partial cylindricalform and a pair of arms of partial cylindrical' form pivoted withrespect to each other and with respect to said base portion and havingfree edges, said arms when swung apart forming with the base portionv a.trough for the reception of the product, means for swinging said armstoward each other to form with the base portion substantially a cylinderfor confining the product, stationary means for closing the ends ofmolding units while they are being filled and durm ing their closingmovement, a covering' element beneath which the molding units during thtravel after they have been filler, cove element being shaped so thatthe of movement of said arms being such that closing of the moldingunits the free edges of the arms move in contiguous relation to thecovering element.

6. In a machine of he character described, in combination, a pluralityof molding units, for pivotally linking adjacent molding units t'.gether, means for moving molding units through a path of travel, each ofsait, moldirg units including a pair of arms of partial cyl! drical formpivoted with respect each and having free edges, said arms when swungapart forming a trough for the reception of the product and with thefree edges of adjacent molding units being contiguous, means forswinging said arms toward each other to form substantially a cylinderfor conning the product, a covering element beneath which the moldingunits pass during their travel after they have been nlled, said coveringelement being shaped so that and the path of movement of said arms beingsuch that during closing of the molding units the free edges of the armsmove in contiguous relation to the covering element.

7. In a machine of the character described, in combination, a pluralityof molding units,

' Vfor pivotally linking adjacent molding units together, means formoving saidy molding units through a path of travel, each of saidmolding units including a base portion of partial cylindrical form and apair of arms of partial cylindrical form pivoted with respect to eachother and with respect to said base portion and having free edges, said.arms when swung apart forming with the base portion a trough for thereception of the product andwith the free edges of adjacent moldingunits being contiguous, means for swinging said arms toward each otherto form with the base portion substantially a cylinder for confining theproduct, stationary means for closing the ends of said molding unitswhile they are being lledand during their closing movement, a, coveringelement beneath which the molding units pass during their travel afterthey have been lled and forming with the stationary means a tunnel,said' covering element being shaped so that and the path of movement ofsaid arms being such that duringclosing. of the molding units the freeedg s of the arms move in contiguous relation' to thev covering element.

8. In a machine of the character described; in combination, a pluralityof molding unitameans for pivotally linking adjacent molding unitstogcther, means for moving said molding units through a path of travel,each of saidV molding units including a pair of arms of partialcylinrical form pivotedwith respect to eachother and' having free edges,saidV arms when swung apart forming a trough for the reception of thevproduct, means for swinging said' arms toward each other to formsubstantially a cylinder for coniining the product, a coveringl elementbeneathr which the molding units pass during theirtravel. aiter` theyhave been iilled', said covering element beingA shaped so that andthepath of' movement of said arms being suchA that during closing ofthemolding unit-s the free edges of the arms move in con.n tiguous relationto the covering element, saidfpath: of travel including a can fillingstationg.,andl means at the can. filling station for ejectingthe'contents of said molding units successively into cans:

9. In a machine or the character` described, inI

combination', a plurality of molding units, means for pivotally linkingadjacent molding units to:`

gether, meansv for moving said molding units through a path of travel,each of saidv molding units including apair ofarms of partial cylinedrical form pivoted with respect to each other and having free edges,said arms when swung apart forming a trough for the reception of theproduct, means for swinging said arms toward each other to formsubstantially a cylinder for conning the product, stationary means forclosing the ends of said molding units while they are being filled andduring their closing movement, a covering element beneath which themolding units pass during their travel after they have been filled, saidcovering element being shaped so that and the path of movement of sai-darms being such that during closing of the molding units the free edgesof the arms move in contiguous relation to the covering element, saidpath of travel including a can filling station, and means at the canfilling station for ejecting the contents or said molding unitssuccessively into cans.

10. In a machine of the character described, in combination, a pluralityof molding units, each of said molding units including a pair of arms ofpartial cylindrical form pivoted with respect to each other, saidmolding unit forming a trough for the reception of the product whenopen, said molding units being spaced so that the arms of adjacentmolding units when open are contiguous, means for moving said arms to aclosed position with respect to each other to form a cylinder, saidmolding units having open ends, means for moving said molding unitscontinuously through a path of travel, and stationary means for closingsaid open ends while the molding units are being lled with product andwhile the arms are moving to a closed position.

11. In a machine of the character described, in combination, a pluralityof molding units, each of said molding units including a base portion ofpartial cylindrical form and a pair of movable arms of partialcylindrical form pivoted with respect to said base portion on each sidethereof, said base and arms forming a trough for the reception of theproduct when open, said molding units being spaced so that the arms ofadjacent molding units when open for the reception of the product arecontiguous, means for moving said arms to a closed position with respectto said base portion to form a cylinder embracing the product andmolding the same, with the axes of adjacent cylinders being parallel tobut out of alignment with each other, and means for moving said moldingunits continuously through a path of travel with the axes of thecylinders always parallel to each other.

12. In a machine of the character described, in combination, a pluralityof molding units, each of said molding units including a base portion ofpartial cylindrical form and a pair of movable arms of partialcylindrical form pivoted with respect to said base portion on each sidethereof, said base and arms forming a trough for the reception of theproduct when open, said molding units being spaced so that the arms ofadjacent molding units are contiguous, means for moving said arms to aclosed position with respect to said base portion to form a cylinderhaving an axis, said molding units having open ends, stationary meansfor closing said open ends while the molding units are being lled withproduct, and means for moving said molding units continuously through apath of travel with the axes of the cylinders always parallel to eachother.

13. In a machine of the character described, in combination, a pluralityof molding units, each of said molding units including a base portion ofpartial cylindrical form and a pair of arms of partial cylindrical formpivoted with respect to said base portion on each side thereof, saidbase and arms forming a trough for the reception of the product whenopened, said molding units being spaced so that the arms of adjacentmolding units are contiguous, means for moving said arms to a closedposition with respect to said base portion to form a cylinder having anaxis, said molding units having open ends, means for moving said moldingunits continuously through a path of travel with the axes of thecylinders always parallel to each other, and means for closing said openends while the molding units are being filled with product and whilethey are moving to a closed position.

14. In a machine of the character described, in combination, a moldingunit including a base portion having transverse edges and a pair of armshaving free transverse edges and being hinged with respect t0 said baseportion on opposite sides of and adjacent the transverse side edges ofthe base, said base and arms each being partially cylindrical andforming when in closed relation a cylinder for embracing the productwith the cylinder having open ends, means for opening and closing saidmolding unit, said molding unit when open forming a trough which isrelatively long in its longitudinal direction to facilitate placing afull charge of the product in the trough With the bulk of the productwell below the free edges of said arms, stationary means for closing theopen ends of the cylinder while it is being filled with product, andmeans for moving said molding unit continuously in a direction such thatwhen the molding unit is closed to form a cylinder the axis of thecylinder is normal to the direction of movement, said axis remaining insaid normal position throughout its movement.

EBEN H. CARRUTHERS.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS NumberName Date 371,493 Dolan Oct. 11, 1887 1,855,675 Hoimeister Apr. 26, 19322,180,349 De Back Nov. 21, 1939 2,340,744 Gruwell, Jr. Feb. 1, 1944

